Shield

File:Sheildmon.png

Shield monitor from Sonic 2

A shield is a power-up that protects the player from harm. When the player runs into an enemy or trap, they fall backwards and the shield is lost. Shields offer limited protection in the same way as rings do, although shields can't be re-collected after they are lost.

Shields can be obtained though breaking monitors, or the gumball machine bonus stage in Sonic 3.

Types of shield

Sonic 1 and Sonic 2

• The original shield is a simple blue sphere, with no additional advantages.

Sonic 3 & Knuckles

• The water shield, which protects the player from drowning, deflects some enemy projectile attacks and lets you "bounce".
• The fire shield, which protects the player from flames and lets you do zoom forwards in mid-air.
• The lightning shield, which protects the player from electric damage and lets you to a double-jump, as well as attracting rings.

Sonic 3D: Flickies' Island

• The standard blue shield.
• The fire shield.
• The gold shield, which lets the player perform homing attacks on nearby enemies.